Ski resorts around North America making final preparations for Easter Day, which in many regions marks the last big event of the winter ski and snowboard season.

At Crystal Mountain, Washington’s largest ski area, an Easter Egg Hunt will take place on Sunday at the Alpine Inn, starting at 12.30 for children 10 and under. (Parents – please bring 12 candy-filled eggs to the inn by 11am latest).

Southern California’s Mountain High Resort in Wrightwood is also staging its annual Easter Egg Hunt on Sunday with top prize – two 2012/13 season passes to the area. There are two hunts – both are free and are open to anyone with a season pass or lift ticket. The first, for adults, starts at 8.30am. If you find the golden egg you win an Adult Anytime Season Pass (value $699). Other prises include 8-hour lift tickets, night-skiing tickets, retail discounts and plenty of Easter eggs. The Children’s Easter Egg Hunt begins at 10am at the Children’s Academy (just above the base area). The child who finds the golden egg wins a 2012/13 Children’s Season Pass (value $229).

In Northstar, near Lake Tahoe, the Easter Bunny will be shredding up the slopes with pockets full of candy, and cruising around the ice rink from 12.30pm-2.30pm. There is an egg hunt all over the village, which starts at 10.30, and an Easter Bunny and Ripperoo (the Northstar ski/snowboard School mascot) Parade through the village at 4.45pm.

Sugar Bowl Resort is also hosting its annual Golden Egg Hunt. The Easter Bunny will be skiing around the mountain, hiding coloured eggs, handing out chocolate candy and taking photos with guests. It will have additional clues to the location of Sugar Bowl’s Golden Egg (containing a 2012/13 mid-week season pass).

The top prize at Alpine Meadows Ski Resort’s free Adult Easter Egg Hunt is a Bronze Season Pass.  Hundreds of coloured eggs have been hidden across Alpine’s 2,400 acres, but only one gold one contains the pass. The hunt runs from 9am-4pm.  Meanwhile, the ski school is staging a kids-only hunt for little ones in the Children’s Ski School area.

At nearby Squaw Valley, the annual Easter Egg Hunt starts as the lifts open tomorrow at 9am, with clues throughout the day via Twitter, Facebook and the Squaw Valley Smartphone app. The big prize here is also a golden egg containing a 2012/13 Adult Bronze season pass. The Easter Bunny will be in the village from 10am-4pm for photos, and a non-denominational mountaintop Easter service will be held at the top of the Links chairlift at 2pm.

At Park City Mountain Resort in Utah, there’s free hot chocolate and pastries followed by an egg hunt with the Easter Bunny for kids 6 years and under, with an All-Mountain Hunt for everyone else, hunting for two golden eggs containing a 2012/13 Park City Mountain Resort Season Pass. Check their Facebook, Twitter and Google+ pages already for clues!

The highlight at Winter Park, Colorado, is the 35th annual Golden Bunny Fun Race – a chance for kids 10 years and under to race against the Easter Bunny, starting at 12.15 at the top of Lower Village Way trail ( registration is between 8.30-11am in the Balcony House). Children need a valid lift ticket to take part, and can complete the race course as many times as they wish until it closes at 1.30pm. 

Winter Park also has two Easter Egg Hunts – an on-mountain candy hunt and a non-skiing hunt for kids 5 and under. The Golden Bunny Classic Candy Hunt (on skis) will take place on the Porcupine and Bobcat Trails in Discovery Park (kids need a valid lift ticket to access the hunt) at 11.45 for a midday start. Little ones will find their similar (non-skiing) hunt in the base area at the Zephyr Plaza (near the Slopeside Mountain Adventure Center) at 11.45. For older children, there will be special Easter Snowcat Tours and, at 12.45, there’s an open-air non-denominational Easter Service at the top of the Zephyr Express chairlift (lift tickets are required).

Also in Colorado, Breckenridge Ski Resort’s annual Easter Egg Hunt comprises 10,000 plastic eggs hidden across Parks 8 and 9 for guests of all ages – each containing treats and prizes.

The largest egg hunt in Colorado- and possibly in any ski resort – will take place at Copper Mountain.  The search is divided by age group: ages 12 and up (8.30am); 7-11 years (10am); and ages 6 and under 11am). Afterwards, there are photo opportunities with the Easter Bunny in Center Village; an Easter egg decorating competition; egg & spoon races; and numerous other ‘Eggtivities’.

On the East coast, Sugarloaf, New England, has a special Easter Sunday  ritual – at 5.40am you board the Superquad in the dark to attend the Sunrise Service before skiing down for breakfast, visits from the Easter Bunny (together with his furry friends Amos the Moose and Blueberry Bear) and an egg hunt for the kids.   

Also in New England, Killington is staging an Easter Sunrise Service at Snowshed Lodge at 6am, followed by breakfast and an Easter Egg Hunt.

Happy Hunting!